Defining the Problem
Hoof 'n' Horn, a theatre group at Duke, needed a replica of Audrey II for their production of Little Shop of Horrors. The plant had to "eat" actors and get them offstage, all while working on the unusual black-box stage the group was using. After talking with the director and a few actors, we landed on four requirements:
- It can't hurt anyone getting "eaten" by it.
- It has to fit on stage, so there's a hard size limit.
- It needs to survive multiple shows, so durability matters.
- We only had to build the shell, since the group planned to decorate it themselves.
Rapid Prototyping
My team ran through several CAD models and small early prototypes. Here's what I designed.
Once the small prototypes checked out, we moved on to building one at full scale.
Prototype 1 Evaluation
Pros
- The top mouth was sturdy, and the hinge was lightweight and easy to operate.
- The size and weight matched what we needed almost exactly.
Cons
- An actor couldn't step inside without breaking it.
- Once "eaten," the actor was still completely visible.
Final Prototype Changes
Based on what worked and what didn't, we rebuilt the final version that we delivered to Hoof 'n' Horn. We made three main changes:
- Added wooden walls to the base so actors are hidden once they step or fall in.
- Covered it in papier-mâché to hide the actor from every angle.
- Added wheels underneath so it's easy to move around.
Reflection
This was the first engineering project I completed at Duke. EGR101 taught me a lot about working with a real client as part of a team. Beyond building the actual prototype, we also had to write technical memos and present our work to students and faculty.